Thanks to Beryl Novak, we now have an idea of the benefits and dangers of living off the grid. The traps can be quite extreme: fights with bears, competition with wolves, potentially fatal wild foods, and the list goes on. However, the benefits make life seem worthwhile.
Freedom is perhaps the biggest draw to Beryl’s secluded life. She’s still subject to the law and the seasons, but she can do whatever she wants. “People who are working to make more money are just chasing their tails,” said Beryl. in the forum.
Novak is a fascinating character with a fascinating life. This is the story of Beryl Novak.
Beryl moved into her shack in the woods in 1977 and has lived there ever since.
Beryl learned self-sufficiency very early in her life. After her father died when he was 5, a no-nonsense mentor took Novak’s grouse-hunting training. Beryl proved to be a natural, using a short bullet to land her first grouse.
Deer hunting, however, he learned everything on his own. At ten years old, she shot her first dollar and has shot many more since. Novak eventually joined the Air Force, which opened him up to the horrors of the war in Vietnam. Novak timed his leave days to coincide with hunting season at home.
He bought the 40-acre forest that surrounds his house in 1966 for $700. Novak moved into the 40-acre property in 1977 and has never left since.
Beryl’s one-room house has everything she needs to survive: gas for cooking, wood for fuel, and a wood-burning stove for warmth. A hand pump outside provides water, and the sauna shed offers a place to relax.
Novak has a television, which he rarely watches because “everything on television is so depressing.” Beryl stopped working in 1995 and embraced a life of self-sufficiency. “It doesn’t cost much to live here,” she added. “I get by pretty cheap.”
People are hard to please, Beryl says, so she’s never really lonely: “You can’t please people. So I said to hell with that, and here I am. I get visitors… but not as many as before.” Everyone is dying.”
If she has no reason to leave, Beryl will stay at her house for days on end. Her beard and hair are around two decades old and she has no plans to cut them. “I don’t have to live to please anybody else,” she said.
Novak depends on home grown food and hunting for his livelihood.
Novak’s food comes entirely from nature. She has grown sweet corn, melons, apples, onions, and carrots. Harvests vary with the weather, but he usually harvests enough to sustain himself.
Beryl completes her vegetable diet mainly with capercaillie meat. He is also a skilled deer hunter who has had a hunting license since 1960. In Forum reports that Beryl has shot 75 deer in his forest. Conservation officers increase their food reserves by leaving illegally hunted deer.
Novak used to keep a dog to keep him company and help him on his hunts. The dog died nearly a decade ago, and he has no plans to acquire another. He explained his reasoning to in the forum:
“I felt like it wasn’t right to have a dog and not have a way to get him to the vet. It’s bad enough that people have to take me to the doctor, but it’s too much to ask someone else to take my dog to the vet.”
Beryl uses an old phone for emergencies and neighbors for transportation
Tired of the constant calls from telemarketers, Beryl disconnected his landline. She also cut off her connection to the people close to him, not that she cared though.
“There was no one left calling me who I wanted to talk to,” Novak said. “People were saying, ‘But we can’t reach you,’ and I was saying, ‘That’s the point.'”
In 2015, a neighbor gave him a cheap phone for emergencies. She has no internet or social media connection, but Beryl doesn’t care. As long as she can farm and hunt, Beryl is happy.
At her annual medical appointment, Beryl received a clean bill of health. She hasn’t had a cold or flu for years because she doesn’t get together with many people. Beryl’s life provided natural protection against the coronavirus.
“I have been social distancing here for 20 years,” he said. When he needs a ride to the hospital, his neighbors and some of his friends are happy to oblige. He returns the favor by offering food from his garden or a hunt.
Beryl hasn’t driven a car since hers broke down in 2005. She uses an all-terrain vehicle to travel between her fields, a mile away.
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn